


he's a real keeper

by sapphicshakespeare



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, M/M, Self-Indulgent, Wuko Week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:20:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26295529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sapphicshakespeare/pseuds/sapphicshakespeare
Summary: It isn't a real date, Wu reminds himself, face smoldering crimson. Just two pals grabbing dinner together.or: the one where wu takes mako out to dinner :)
Relationships: Korra/Asami Sato, Mako/Prince Wu (Avatar)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 216





	he's a real keeper

**Author's Note:**

> you can have a little fluff, as a treat <3  
> don't ever say i don't do nothing for you !!

“Wu, are you alright?” 

Anxiety bubbles up in Wu’s chest, threatening to upset his stomach. He’d almost fainted after his big speech, and was now sitting next to Mako on the steps of the palace as Zhu Li answered question after question about the upcoming election.

“Of course I am,” he insists, trying to suppress the tremor in his voice. “I was just wondering… if you wanted to get dinner today? Yeah, I know the _swankiest_ place! It is fancy, though, so you might have to wear something other than your uniform.” For weeks, Wu had been working up the nerve to ask him out. To dinner, that is.

Mako, caught off-guard by Wu’s sudden change in tone, rolls his eyes. A small smile creeps across his face. _Oh spirits, that smile._

“It would just be to catch up,” Wu clarifies, throwing a weak punch at Mako’s shoulder, “Because we haven’t hung out in so long.” 

It wasn’t entirely a lie - the two of them hadn’t spent much time together since they’d arrived in Ba Sing Se, and lately Mako seemed strangely distant - but Wu most definitely had ulterior motives. Like spending time alone with Mako. Like seeing him in a suit. Like walking home with him, arm in arm, down the dark, quiet streets of the Upper Ring. 

Mako clears his throat, bringing Wu back down to Earth.

“Sure, I’ll go. What time?” _Is my mind playing tricks on me, or does he seem excited?_ Shaking his head, Wu looks back up at Mako.

“Uh …” Truthfully, he hadn’t thought this far ahead. He hadn’t even thought that Mako would agree to go - it was his day off, and Wu was sure he didn’t want to spend it babysitting his boss at a fancy restaurant in Ba Sing Se, of all places.

“How about six?” Mumbling to himself, Mako counts the number of hours between now and 6:00 pm on his fingers, then smiles.

“Sounds great.” Mako’s eyes travel across the room to Korra, who is waving him down. “Ah, sorry. Gotta go. See you in three hours, Wu.” He jumps up, waving a hand at Wu as he strolls over to Korra, who playfully punches him in the stomach. Wu inhales sharply, holding back a happy squeal as he skips back to his room, humming to himself, full of unreasonable delight.

~~~

 _Where_ is _he?_ Wu groans, poking at his now-cold tofu dumplings. He’d been sitting alone in one of the fanciest restaurants in Ba Sing Se for half an hour, waiting for Mako to show up. _He’s never late. Maybe he didn’t want to come? Oh spirits, I shouldn’t have invited him. I probably freaked him out._ Glancing around the restaurant, Wu realizes that this might’ve been a mistake. The majority of the patrons are young, wealthy couples who had come here for a date night. Still, it wasn’t like Mako to agree to something he didn’t want to do, even for Wu’s sake. He’d seemed genuinely interested in spending time with Wu on their dinner date. 

_It isn’t an actual date,_ Wu reminds himself, face smoldering crimson. _Just two pals grabbing dinner together._ Across the room, the restaurant doors creak open. Out of the corner of his eye, Wu sees a familiar face wander through them. Letting out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, Wu’s body floods with relief. _He showed up._

A waiter stops Mako, asking him where his reservation is.

“Mako,” Wu exclaims a little too loudly, drawing the attention of multiple other guests. He waves his hand, beckoning Mako towards him. “Over here!” Mako gives him a small wave back, and the waiter lets him go.

“Hi,” Mako says softly, sitting down across the table from Wu. Resisting the urge to smile, Wu’s eyes travel up Mako’s body. He’s not wearing his uniform - instead, a black suit jacket is draped over a red dress shirt, buttoned up to the top. Wu’s fingers itch to unbutton it. His eyes meet Mako’s, and Wu can’t help but notice the sparks of amber in them.

“You, uh, already ordered?” Mako gestures to the untouched dumplings on the plate in front of Wu. Narrowing his eyes, Wu remembers to be upset with Mako.

“Actually, I ordered these to share, but they got cold because _some_ one decided to show up late." Mako winces, dropping his gaze down to the table. Groaning, Wu’s face softens.

“I’m not _really_ mad at you,” Wu clears up, poking Mako’s arm. “I can just ask them to make us some new ones.” Mako shakes his head, grabbing the plate. It takes a minute, but eventually Wu sees steam start to float off the dumplings.

“Woah,” he marvels, reaching out to take a dumpling, “How’d you _do_ that?”

“Don’t touch it, stupid! It's hot,” Mako hisses, seizing Wu’s wrist. They freeze, both keenly aware of the situation. Abruptly, Mako drops Wu’s wrist. His skin still tingles from Mako’s warm touch.

“Sorry. I just didn’t want you to burn yourself.” Wu nods, mutters a _thank you,_ and glances again at Mako’s hands. Mako picks up a dumpling, blows on it to cool it down, and places it in front of Wu. 

“Thanks.”

By the time the waiter comes back around to check on them, Wu and Mako are starving. Having wolfed down an entire plate of dumplings, they order noodles, sticky buns, and custard tarts. They also get a bottle of wine, which Wu vows is the best in all Ba Sing Se.

“So,” Wu says, leaning in close to Mako, “How have you been?”

“Wu,” Mako deadpans, shifting in his seat, “I spend every minute of every day around you. You know how I’ve been.”

“No! All the time we spend together is planning for the election - not that that’s _not important,_ because I know it _is_ \- but I don’t think I’ve had a real conversation with you in days.” 

“Alright,” Mako says, throwing up his hands in defeat, “What do you want to talk about?” Wu thinks about it for a second, taking a bite of his sticky bun.

“Have you met anyone interesting since you’ve been in Ba Sing Se?” Mako smirks, the way he does when he’s about to say something that will probably make Wu blush.

“Well, there’s this one guy,” he starts, staring directly into Wu’s eyes, inviting him to play along. He’s done this before - started a puzzling conversation, saturated with subtext, that Wu ends up thinking about for days - but usually only when he gets drunk. Wu catches a glimpse of Mako’s wine glass. He has barely touched it. The former Prince gives in, squinting at Mako.

“Oh? Do tell.”

“He’s very important, he’s a public figure. And I can’t quite seem to figure him out. See, he’s very loud in public; never lets a single second of silence settle across a room. But, when you get to know him, he’s quite the opposite.” Wu feels his heart begin to race.

“Now don’t get me wrong, he will never pass up an opportunity to talk your ear off. Even when you’re alone together, he always has a million things to say. Sometimes, though, he stops talking. He closes his eyes and drinks in the world around him, reveling in the quiet marvels of the room. It’s endearing, really.”

“ _Endearing,_ huh?” Mako’s ears turn bright red, and he tears his eyes away from Wu’s.

“Ah, I’m talking too much. Tell me what you think about him.” There’s something deeper there, something in his tone that tugs at Wu’s heartstrings, that makes him want to dissolve a pile of goo at Mako’s feet. He does none of those things.

“I think he’s a real keeper,” Wu announces with an exaggerated wink, sending Mako into a stifled fit of laughter. A genuine smile is plastered across Wu’s face, so wide that it almost hurts. _I think I made him laugh._ The notion causes his stomach to do backflips.

“Okay, okay, I’ve got another one - how are you liking the city?” Halfway through sipping his wine, Mako snorts, staining the tablecloth red.

 _“Shit,”_ he curses, covering the splash with his napkin. Wu starts to laugh again, still riding his previous high that came with making Mako happy.

“That bad, huh? And here I was, thinking you liked big cities.” Glaring up at him, Mako sets his wine glass down on the table. The atmosphere immediately shifts, but Wu isn’t quite sure why. 

“Fine. You wanna know how I feel about this city? I _hate_ this place.” Mako motions around the room, his voice slowly getting louder. “This dumb restaurant, these dumb people, the fucking _palace?_ Everyone acts like they’re so much better than me because they’re rich. Varrick, Zhu Li, the other candidates, _you_ \- ”

He stops, recognizing the number of people who are staring at them. Wu is frozen in his seat, staring at Mako through glistening eyes. 

“Is that,” someone says, just loud enough for Wu to hear, “The _King?_ What is he doing here? Who is he with?” Wu stands up, startling Mako.

“I’m,” he says, voice wavering, “I’m gonna go to the bathroom.” Mako goes to follow him, but is waved off. “By _myself,_ thank you.”

Wu can feel the patron’s eyes trained on him, but refuses to acknowledge it. Instead, he locks himself in a bathroom stall and sits on the floor, his breath coming in short, sharp gasps. _I knew this was a bad idea, I_ knew _it._

Wu screws his eyes shut, pressing his hands over his ears. He doesn’t hear Mako enter the bathroom, doesn’t hear him call his name, doesn’t hear him slump down against the door of the stall in defeat.

“Wu,” Mako says, catching the King’s attention, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to yell at you. It’s just, well, everything’s been so stressful lately and, nine times out of ten, I have no idea what I’m doing, and I know that those are pretty lame excuses, but… I’m sorry.” Wu pulls his knees up to his chest, dropping his head between them. 

“Can we please just go back to the table and eat some custard tarts?” Mako laughs - a real laugh, one that bounces off the walls of the empty bathroom, making Wu smile. 

“Sure we can.” 

And they do. The conversation about Ba Sing Se dies, and Mako lets Wu do what he usually does; talk. A lot. Wu rambles on and on about everything, from the dream he had the other night about flying badgermoles to his marvelous ideas for Zhu Li’s eventual inauguration ceremony. By the time they’re done eating, it’s quite late. Mako insists on paying for the meal, but changes his mind when he sees the bill.

“Do you want me to call a cab?” They’re standing just outside the entrance to the restaurant, the light from the streetlamps illuminating the sidewalk. There are barely any cars on the road - it’s late enough that most of the city is sleeping. Wu shakes his head, tugging on Mako’s suit jacket.

“Let’s just walk ho - um, back to the palace.” Mako nods, locking arms with Wu. His face blooms pink as he looks at Wu, and he tries to tear himself away from Wu. Latching onto Mako’s arm, Wu pulls him closer. 

“It’s dark out,” he claims, “I can’t see very well.” Wu is sure that Mako will see right through his excuse, but instead he just nods, letting Wu keep his hand on his arm

“Okay.”

~~~

It’s a long walk back to the palace, longer than Wu had expected, and Mako doesn’t say much. It doesn’t really bother him - Wu finds that he is content with weaving through the silent streets with Mako, as long as he stays close to him.

Once the palace is in sight, Wu feels Mako relax. _He must’ve been keeping quiet to keep me safe,_ Wu thinks. Smiling up at Mako, Wu stops walking.

“Wu? We’re almost there, come on. _Don’t_ ask me to carry you, I _won’t_ do it.” Wu laughs a little, realizes Mako isn’t joking, then laughs more.

“No,” he says in between giggles, holding onto Mako for support, “I’m not going to ask you to _carry_ me!” Mako cracks a smile. “I just wanted to thank you for dinner.”

“What do you mean? You paid for it.” Mako gives Wu a questioning look.

"Thank you for coming, even if you were late. I, um, I had a lot of fun. Tonight was perfect. Well, mostly.” The second the words leave his mouth, Wu wants to take them back. Mako stiffens and drops Wu’s arm.

“I didn’t mean it like that, I mean, you did hurt my feelings a little, but I wasn’t trying to make you feel bad, it was just a joke, I’m so - ”

Mako cuts him off, shaking his head. Wu notices that his fists are smoking, balled at his sides.

“No, I get it. Sorry for ruining your _perfect night._ ” Against his better judgement, Wu feels the anger boiling inside of him.

“ _Spirits,_ Mako, I never said you ruined anything! You’re twisting my words so you can find an excuse to be mad at me! I don’t get it, why do you do this shit? First you got mad at me for _laughing_ at the restaurant, and now you’re mad at me for something I didn’t even say! What’s your deal?” He shoves Mako lightly, trying to get a reaction out of him. When Mako snaps back, raising his smoking fist, Wu trips over himself and falls back onto the hard concrete. Mako’s eyes widen in terror.

“ _Fuck,_ Wu, I’m sorry, let me help you up.” Wu ignores him, pushing himself back up with his hands, crying out in pain when the already-torn skin of his palms digs into the rough sidewalk. Mako moves towards him, and Wu backs up into the street.

“I’m fine,” he says through gritted teeth, in an attempt to disguise his pain as anger. Hot tears burn their way down his face, and Wu is suddenly grateful for the shadow of night that conceals his face.

"Sorry for offering,” Mako spits. “It’s just my _job_ to take care of you and make sure you don’t irreversably fuck things up, which is a lot harder than it looks, since _every other thing you do is a dangerous mistake._ ” Mako’s words are sharp and cold, with the intent to cut. Wu feels like he’s just been stabbed - more shocked than hurt, like the pain hasn’t quite set in yet. 

“Fuck you, Mako,” Wu counters weakly. There’s no weight to his words, though, and Mako knows it.

“ _Th_ _at’s another thing,_ ” Mako seethes, twisting the knife. Wu is petrified, afraid of what comes next. “You’re a _flirt._ I don’t think, in your entire life, you’ve ever _once_ been serious! Agni, I can’t _stand_ it.” Something inside Wu snaps. His blood runs cold.

“You know what, Mako? Don’t stick around. If you hate Ba Sing Se this much, _leave._ You’re not my bodyguard anymore, you can do _whatever_ you want. You’re finally fucking rid of me, right? So just _go._ ” Wu pulls the knife from his own chest, hurling it towards Mako. He doesn’t wait to see if it sticks - the King of the Earth Kingdom turns towards the palace, walking as fast as he can.

~~~

When he wakes up the next day, Wu’s palms burn and his stomach turns. His eyelids feel heavy and raw, the way they do when he falls asleep crying. He can still hear Mako yelling in the back of his head - _you’re a flirt, you’ve never once been serious, every other thing you do is a dangerous mistake._ Whimpering, Wu presses the balls of his hands into his eyelids.

“Shut up, shut up, shut up,” he chants, trying to turn it off. It doesn’t stop, though, so Wu leans back against the wall and cries until his eyes are sore. He unconsciously picks at his scabbed palms, reopening the closed cuts. “Fuck.”

Eventually, Wu decides to go down to Korra and Asami’s guest room. Knocking on the door lightly, he worries that they might not be awake. Asami answers the door.

“Wu,” she says, yawning, “What are you doing here? Do you have any idea how early it is?” Looking him up and down, Wu sees her expression change from confusion to concern.

“Hey, are you alright?” Wu nods unconvincingly, and Asami invites him in.

“Where’s Korra?” Asami gestures to the balcony where the Avatar stands, still in her pajamas. “Can I talk to her?”

“Be my guest. Tell her I’m going to take a shower, alright?” Asami’s hand grazes his shoulder, giving it an affirming squeeze. Taking a deep breath, he walks over to Korra.

“Hey,” Wu mutters, tapping her arm. Korra turns around, surprised but not alarmed. “Asami let me in. I tore up my palms pretty bad last night, and I was wondering if you could use some of your _Avatar magic_ to fix them.”

“Two things,” she sighs. “Number one, it’s not ‘Avatar magic,’ it’s basic waterbending. Number two,” Korra turns over Wu’s hands, staring at his ripped skin, “ _How did this happen?_ Were you attacked? Where was Mako?” Wu inhales sharply, memories of last night once again rushing towards the front of his head. _You’re a flirt._

“No,” he says forcefully, “I just tripped.” Wu shakes his head. _Control yourself._

“It’s nothing, really, I just have an extraordinarily low tolerance for pain.” Korra laughs softly, and Wu watches as she pulls water right out of the air. 

“Cool trick, right? Katara taught me to look for water wherever I could find it, and foggy mornings are always a good place to find some.” Wu watches, enthralled, as the water begins to glow around his palms. After a few minutes, his hands seem to heal entirely.

“That’s amazing,” he whispers, turning his hands around in wonder. “Thank you so much! Hey, how about a night out on the town at payment, huh?”

Korra knows that Wu is joking, but slaps him with a mini water-whip anyway. Rubbing the spot on his arm where she hit him, Wu thanks her a couple more times, then leaves.

 _I should go apologize,_ Wu thinks. _I didn’t mean anything I said. Well, I didn’t mean most of it. Spirits, I wish I’d never brought it back up._ He reaches Mako’s room - _a junior suite,_ he thinks, smiling a little - and stops in front of the door. His hands shake. After standing there for spirits-know-how-long, Wu knocks. To his surprise, it’s unlocked, and the door squeaks open.

“Mako?” Faintly, Wu hears the shower running. _I’ll just wait here then,_ he thinks, climbing up into the center of Mako’s bed and sitting there. Wu becomes acutely aware that he never got dressed for the day - he’s still wearing a too-big white shirt that almost hangs off his shoulder over an old pair of striped pajama shorts. For a moment, he contemplates running back to his room and getting dressed for real. Before he can, the bathroom door clicks open.

Wu shouldn’t have expected Mako to come out of the shower fully clothed, but he certainly didn’t expect to see him standing there, dripping wet, with just a towel wrapped around his waist. It takes a second for Mako to realize that Wu is sitting in his bed, staring at him, blushing furiously.

“Wu! What are you doing in my room?” Mako’s face turns a lovely shade of cherry, and Wu drops his face into his hands.

“You left the door unlocked,” Wu says frantically, “I’m sorry!” He can hear Mako grumbling.

“It’s fine,” he finally exhales, “You don’t have to cover your eyes anymore.”

Wu opens his eyes to find Mako, still slightly damp, wearing a “Vote Moon!” shirt and a pair of hastily put on shorts. He shuffles across his room towards Wu, sitting down on the bed next to him. 

“Sorry for coming in unannounced, I just, uh, I wanted to tell you something.” Mako stares at Wu, regret flashing across his face. _Oh, so he remembers what I said. Fucking shit._ Struggling to find the right words, Wu lets out a frustrated groan and lays back on Mako’s bed. Mako lays down next to him, propping himself up with his elbow.

“Yeah? I have something to tell you, too.”

“Let me go first,” Wu says, putting a hand on Mako’s shoulder. Mako concedes, motioning for him to get on with it.

“I want to apologize for what I said. I didn’t mean it, I mean, I don’t want you to hate me forever and I really did have a wonderful night with you and I wouldn’t mind doing it again and… I’m rambling, aren’t I?”

Mako smiled, nodding his head.

“Just a little. Okay, my turn. I’m really fucking sorry about everything I said. It was spiteful, it was mean, and you didn’t deserve it.”

“Alright,” Wu replies, shifting to face Mako. Their faces are so close that their noses are nearly touching. His hand still resting on Mako’s shoulder, Wu counts the flakes of amber in the firebender’s eyes.

“I’ve got one other thing to say,” Wu breathes, softly enough that Mako barely hears him.

“Say it,” Mako tells him, moving impossibly closer. His dark hair still glistens with moisture, falling across his face. Wu laughs gently, brushing some of it back with his fingers.

“So, there’s this guy.” Mako attempts, to no avail, to bite back his smile. 

“Oh,” he draws out the word, and Wu’s eyes fixate on his chapped lips, “Do tell.”

“He’s the most oblivious guy I’ve ever met. I mean, you could tell him you loved him and he would just think you were a really good friend.”

Wu begins to run his fingers down Mako’s arm, tracing his lighting scars. He feels Mako melt into his touch.

“Oh, but he can be so sweet. He’s saved my life more times than I can count, and not just because it’s his job. When he smiles, my heart sings. And I love him. But I never figured out how to tell him that. Am I cursed to watch him forever, never knowing if he feels the same way about me?”

Wu looks helplessly at Mako, waiting for him to respond. 

“What do you think?”

“I think he’s a real keeper,” Mako mumbles, slipping an arm around Wu’s waist. Holding his breath, Wu slides his hand down next to Mako’s, intertwining their fingers.

Mako leans forward, pressing a soft kiss against Wu’s cheek.

“I think you missed,” Wu whispers.

“Let me try again,” Mako says, brushing his lips against Wu’s, kissing him slowly. Wu sighs into Mako's mouth, smiling against his lips.

“There you go, that was perfect.”

“Really? Let me do it again.”

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading my self-indulgent wuko one-shot :P  
> this was originally going to be much shorter, but i got a little carried away - plus, i needed a break from writing PURE angst.  
> comments and kudos are VERY much appreciated !  
> have a phenomenal day :)


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